Title 2 · Conservation Reauthorized § 2101

CRP, Conservation Reserve Program

Reauthorized at 27 million acres through FY2031. No change to enrollment caps. Grassland enrollment maintained at 2 million acres. Farmable Wetlands Program continued at 750,000 acres.

Funding

Mandatory CCC funding

What CRP does

The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) pays landowners and operators to remove environmentally sensitive agricultural land from production for 10–15 year contract periods. Landowners receive annual rental payments and cost-share assistance for establishing approved cover (typically perennial grasses, trees, or wildlife habitat).

CRP is the granddaddy of voluntary conservation programs, created in 1985, with peak enrollment over 36 million acres in the 1990s.

What changed in the Farm Bill 2.0

Almost nothing structurally. CRP gets reauthorized at current levels:

27 million acre cap maintained through FY2031
2 million acre minimum for grassland enrollment maintained
8.6 million acre cap for continuous enrollment maintained
750,000 acre cap for the Farmable Wetlands Program maintained
Forest management thinning payments ($12M total) and Transition Incentive Program ($50M total) reauthorized

Updates that did happen

A few technical changes:

Cropping history dates updated: eligible land’s required cropping history now references the bill’s enactment date (instead of December 20, 2018)
State enrollment rates: 60% of available acres allocated by historical enrollment, now extending through FY2031
State enrollment historical baseline: FY2007–FY2016 data continues as the reference period

What CRP pays

CRP rental rates vary widely by state, county, and soil productivity. Typical ranges:

General CRP: $40–$120 per acre per year
Continuous CRP (buffer strips, filter strips, riparian areas), $80–$200+ per acre per year
CRP grasslands: $13–$35 per acre per year (lower because grazing rights are typically retained)

Plus 50% cost-share for establishment of approved cover, plus signing/incentive payments for select practices.

Who CRP matters for

Landowners with marginal cropland: soil that’s hard to farm profitably
Landowners managing for wildlife: pheasant, quail, waterfowl, pollinators
Landowners near water bodies: buffer and filter strip enrollment
Beginning farmers seeking entry through Transition Incentive Program
Western ranchers with grassland enrollment

What’s NOT in the bill

The bill does not:

Increase the CRP enrollment cap
Increase rental rate calculations
Add new CRP subprograms (no carbon CRP, no climate CRP)
Address the controversial CRP early termination provisions

How to apply

CRP enrollment happens through periodic general signups (announced by USDA) and through continuous signup (always open) for specific practices:

Contact your local FSA county office
Determine which CRP practice fits your land
Submit offer (general signup) or application (continuous signup)
Land is ranked based on Environmental Benefits Index
If accepted, sign contract and establish cover